2. Here I raise mine Ebenezer; hither by thy help I’m come; and I hope, by thy good pleasure, safely to arrive at home. Jesus sought me when a stranger, wandering from the fold of God; he, to rescue me from danger, interposed his precious blood.

3. O to grace how great a debtor daily I’m constrained to be! Let thy goodness, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to thee. Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love; here’s my heart, O take and seal it, seal it for thy courts above.

Prayer for the Day (In Unison)

Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing that you have made, and you forgive the sins of all those who are penitent; Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we worthily lamenting our sins, and acknowledging our own need, may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Anthem –Miserere Mei (Pergolesi)

Grant us Your great mercy, O Lord. Now in Your goodness and loving kindness,
pour forth compassion upon us.

From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; but the people became impatient on the way. The people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we detest this miserable food.” Then the Lord sent poisonous serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you; pray to the Lord to take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.” So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live.

* Psalter – Psalm 107, with sung Response Hymnal 830-831

Response (General): Give thanks to the Lord for steadfast love, for all God’s wonderful works.

L: (1) O give thanks to the Lord, who is good,

L: Whose steadfast love endures for ever!

ALL: (2) Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,

ALL: Whom the Lord has redeemed from trouble

ALL: (3) And gathered in from the lands,

ALL: From the east and from the west,

ALL: From the north and from the south.

L: (4) Some wandered in the desert wastes,

L: Finding no way to a city in which to dwell;

ALL: (5) Hungry and thirsty,

ALL: Their soul fainted within them.

L: (6) Then in their trouble, they cried to the Lord,

L: Who delivered them from their distress,

ALL: (7) And led them by a straight way,

ALL: Till they reached a city in which to dwell.

L: (8) Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,

L: For his wonderful works to humankind.

ALL: (9) For the Lord satisfies those who are thirsty,

ALL: And fills the hungry with good things.

Response (General): Give thanks to the Lord for steadfast love, for all God’s wonderful works.

L: (33) The Lord turns rivers into a desert,

L: Springs of water into thirsty ground,

ALL: (34) A fruitful land into a salty waste,

ALL: Because of the wickedness of its inhabitants.

L: (35) The Lord turns a desert into pools of water,

L: A parched land into springs of water.

ALL: (36) The Lord lets the hungry dwell there,

ALL: And they establish a city in which to live;

L: (37) They sow fields, and plant vineyards,

L: And get a fruitful yield.

ALL: (38) They multiply greatly by the blessing of the Lord

ALL: Who does not let their cattle decrease.

Response (General): Give thanks to the Lord for steadfast love, for all God’s wonderful works.

L: (39) When they are diminished and brought low

L: Through oppression, trouble, and sorrow,

L: (40) The Lord pours contempt upon princes

L: And makes them wander in trackless wastes;

ALL: (41) But the Lord raises up the needy out of affliction,

ALL: And makes their families like flocks.

L: (42) The upright see it and are glad;

L: And all wickedness stops its mouth.

ALL: (43) Whoever is wise, give heed to these things;

ALL: Consider the steadfast love of the Lord.

Response (General): Give thanks to the Lord for steadfast love, for all God’s wonderful works.

A Reading from the Gospels – John 3:14-21 Jeanni Galloway, Liturgist

And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

“Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.”

Sermon – “The Heart of the Matter is a Matter of the Heart” Dr. Emora T. Brannan

Morning and Pastoral Prayer (by the Minister)

* Hymn –There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy Hymnal 121

1. There’s a wideness in God’s mercy like the wideness of the sea; there’s a kindness in God’s justice, which is more than liberty.

2. There is welcome for the sinner, and more graces for the good! There is mercy with the Savior; there is healing in his blood.

3. For the love of God is broader than the measure of our mind; and the heart of the Eternal is most wonderfully kind.

4. If our love were but more simple, we should rest upon God’s word; and our lives would be illuminated by the presence of our Lord.

(The congregation may be seated after the singing of the Holy, Holy, Holy)

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might. Heaven and earth are full, full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest, hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest, hosanna in the highest.

The pastor continues the thanksgiving. The institution of the Lord’s Supper is recalled.

The pastor concludes:

L: And so,

L: In remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,

L: We offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving

L: As a holy and living sacrifice,

L: In union with Christ’s offering for us,

L: As we proclaim the mystery of faith.

VERSES: THE GREAT THANKSGIVING: MUSICAL SETTING C, RESPONSE 2

Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again!

The pastor invokes the present work of the Holy Spirit and then praises the Trinity, concluding:

L: All honor and glory is yours, almighty Father (God),

L: Now and for ever.

VERSES: THE GREAT THANKSGIVING: MUSICAL SETTING C, RESPONSE 3

Amen, amen, amen.

The Lord’s Prayer Hymnal 895

ALL: Our Father, who art in heaven,

ALL: Hallowed be thy name.

ALL: Thy kingdom come,

ALL: Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

ALL: Give us this day our daily bread.

ALL: And forgive us our trespasses,

ALL: As we forgive those who trespass against us.

ALL: And lead us not into temptation,

ALL: But deliver us from evil.

ALL: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.

ALL: Amen.

Sharing the Bread and Cup

Prayer after Receiving Communion (unison)

Loving God, we thank you that you have fed us in this Sacrament, united us with Christ, & given us a foretaste of the heavenly banquet in your eternal kingdom. Send us out in the power of your Spirit to live and work to your praise and glory, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

* Hymn –Because He Lives Hymnal 364

1. God sent his Son, they called him Jesus; he came to love, heal, and forgive; he lived and died to buy my pardon, an empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives. Because he lives, I can face tomorrow; because he lives, all fear is gone; because I know he holds the future, and life is worth the living just because he lives.

2. How sweet to hold a newborn baby, and feel the pride and joy he [Jesus] gives; but greater still the calm assurance, this child can face uncertain days because he lives. Because he lives, I can face tomorrow; because he lives, all fear is gone; because I know he holds the future, and life is worth the living just because he lives.

3. And then one day I’ll cross the river; I’ll fight life’s final war with pain; and then as death gives way to victory, I’ll see the lights of glory and I’ll know he reigns. Because he lives, I can face tomorrow; because he lives, all fear is gone; because I know he holds the future, and life is worth the living just because he lives.

* Dismissal with Blessing

Leader: Go forth in peace, and be of good courage;

People: We will go forth, holding fast to what is good, and rejoicing in the Holy Spirit.

Minister: The Lord bless you and keep you: The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you: The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. Amen.

* Choral Response –New Testament Benediction (Christian Gregor) Choir

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen.